Learning to live as a widow

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Isn’t it a food basket that the economists measure to determine if we have inflation? I think that’s the term. I’ve been pondering food lately.

This weekend I went to Aldi’s, Giant Eagle, and Heinens to buy food for the house. If you don’t know, Aldi’s is a German-owned discount grocery chain, Giant Eagle is a Pittsburgh-based grocery store chain, and Heinen’s is a high-end small local grocery store chain in the Cleveland area.

Aldi’s has lots of canned goods and some produce that I bought. Then I trotted off to Giant Eagle.

Giant Eagle has just about everything that I didn’t get at Aldi’s but didn’t have coconut creamer or Good bars (problem with a Pittsburgh-based store in Ohio: doesn’t sell Ohio based snack bars) so I had to go to Heinen’s.

Heinen’s has beautiful produce and I always end up buying some vegetable or fruit there. I also bought the coconut creamer for my coffee and the Good bars, which my friend Karen got me hooked on.

Here’s the thing. I don’t shop much anymore in grocery stores and when I do, I tend to buy produce, dog food, beer and wine, and household items like detergent. There’s very little in the stores that I eat.

When did eating become so difficult? I want to buy meat but I want the grass-fed kind. Aldi’s has some but I looked at it and it comes from three different countries and then is combined in the US. That creeped me out so I passed on that. Then I looked at Giant Eagle’s meat. The chicken lists all of the things not used (antibiotics and cages mainly) but it says the chickens were on a vegetarian diet. Well, chickens aren’t vegetarians so I stood there debating what to do. Finally I reluctantly picked out a package.

At Heinen’s, I always wait until some meat is on sale before I buy anything but I checked the bison and the grass fed beef just to be safe. No sale this week.

I felt very out of place in Giant Eagle because I eat so little of what’s there. There is a new Giant Eagle in a neighboring town that is going after the Whole Foods market. I like shopping there because they have really good seafood.

I’m not sure what my point is but since I only have to shop for me, I can have these quirky eating habits. If I had to cook for someone else, I bet I’d revert to a more traditional shopping and eating pattern. In case you’re wondering, I’ve quit eating most prepared foods, most grain-based foods (like bread), food with added sugar, and most dairy products. They occasionally make their way into my food basket but not often.